The concept is simple: a group of people interested in science meet in congenial surroundings (alcohol seems to fuel the conversation), listen to a speaker for about 20 minutes, and then ask him or her questions and launch into a general discussion of the issues raised. The watchwords are informality and democracy.

Our Topic:
Chasing Cosmic Bullets (IYA Strange Telescope Series)

Presented by: Angela Olinto, Ph.D., Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of Chicago; Enrico Fermi Institute; Kavli Institute for Cosmological Physics

The most energetic particles in the universe are ultra-high energy cosmic rays. They are strange beasts: millions of times more powerful than anything produced by man-made accelerators, concentrated (e.g., one can pack the energy of a fastball into a subatomic particle), and very rare (they occur once/sq cm/century). The nature and origin of these cosmic bullets has been a scientific mystery for a century. Recently, an international collaboration of 17 countries joined forces to solve this mystery by building Pierre Auger Observatory, which is spread over 3000 square kilometers in the Pampas of Argentina. Auger has captured enough of these rare particles to find the first clues to their origins, which seem to be from nearby galaxies that host super massive black holes. Auger scientists continue to study these most extreme particles to learn where they come from, what they are made of, and how they are accelerated to such enormous energies.

  

This episode of Café Scientifique launches:
Monday, March 9, 7-9 p.m.
Map Room
1949 N Hoyne Chicago, IL
773.252.7636
No Admission fee - Limited to first 50 Attendees
Café Email list: http://cfcpwork.uchicago.edu/mailman/listinfo/cafe/